阅读理解
Read the following passages carefully and choose one best answer for each question in passage 1, 2 and 3, and answer the questions in passage 4 based on your understanding of the passage.
(4) By the mid-century there emerged a trend in writing that favored a new approach to constructing the novel that abandoned many of the time-honored traditions of form. Indeed, there has been debate about whether many of the works of the times should rightly be considered novels at all. Although not all writers of the period pursued experimental methods, two of them, William Burroughs and Henry Miller, served as exemplary figures. William Burroughs published journals depicting his travels through South America and North Africa. He was heavily influenced by his encounter with foreign languages and associations with strange customs. The impact of his experience son his writing led to a uniquely detached style. Often it is difficult to determine who is telling the stories, or where the characters have come from. In his most celebrated work Naked Lunch, Burroughs is said to have physically cut up the manuscript and pasted it back together, to further disturb the conventional notion of narration. Although these writing techniques did not boost initial sales of his works, American academia accepts him as an important practitioner of literary theory. Henry Miller wrote about his personal life in a depth that previous authors had avoided. In order to better expose compulsive desires, he used very graphic language to describe the details of his intimate relationships. His books Tropic of Capricorn and Tropic of Cancer were banned in some states when they were first published. Although there are disagreements about Miller’s moral positions, he is acknowledged as an important contributor to mid- twentieth century American fiction.
问答题
What is the main topic of this passage?
【正确答案】The main topic of this passage is that a new trend in writing, emerged by the mid-twentieth century, preferred a new way to construct the novel that abandoned many traditional forms.
问答题
What did the passage preceding this one probably discuss?
【正确答案】The passage preceding this one probably discussed the development of traditional approaches to constructing the novel before the mid-twentieth century.
问答题
What is the most difficult aspect of reading the book Naked Lunch?
【正确答案】The most difficult aspect of reading the book Naked Lunch is its unconventional and detached way of narration that makes it hard to determine who is telling the stories or where the characters have come from.
【答案解析】由第二段可知， Burroughs将他的手稿剪开， 并将其粘贴在一起， 以进一步打破传统的叙事方式。 因此阅读的困难可能是“difficult to determine who is telling the stories, or where the characters have come from” 。
问答题
What can we infer about the works of the two men?
【正确答案】The works of the two men broke away from conventional ways of writing the novel and made experiments in creating new unusual approaches. Although the works were not received by the public and the academia without disagreements, their contributions to mid-twentieth century American fiction and literary theory were recognized.